...I wanted to discuss something regarding an issue that has been happening very often lately.

That is, the question: "Teach me how to draw in the TWEWY style! / like Nomura!"

I've been meaning to tell you a long time ago but I never found a way to explain it. Even today, it's still kinda hard for me. The answer?

I have no idea how to do that.

It's just like if you were to ask Nomura himself the same question. One can't explain how he draws in his/her style - he/she just... does it. It's natural. I'm not trying to say that I'm as good as Nomura, no, never. It's just for me, "drawing in the TWEWY style" is something I don't have to think about. Thus, there's no way I can create a tutorial for it! There's nothing to explain, after all.

Back to the "as good as Nomura" thing - again, I'd never, ever try to say or imply that I know how to draw like him. I'd feel terrible, like a stuck-up ass.

I don't know if this clarifies anything... it's a mess in my own head, so imagine how hard it is to try put it into words! Hahah.

But I guess I can tell you how I started to feel the style?...

1. First step for me is - research. Save all OFFICIAL pictures you can get your hands on - official game artwork, emulator screenshots from the game, sprites, concept arts [they have them on [link], in case someone doesn't know; there's also some in the Japanese game manual!] and just... everything. I even found a really cool lineart drawing of Neku Nomura signed for a mag. It's awesome!

Analyze them. Deeply. Look into the lines, try to imagine how the artists have achieved them, try to feel the characters and what the artworks are even trying to say. Eventually, you'll get the hang of how each character expresses himself/herself. For example, can you even imagine Neku being all flaily and blushing? I can't. He's a boy for Christ's sake and not even Joshua with his double-meaning words can change that. Don't just bend the character's way of acting for the sake of the plot. Let them create it!

2. A long time ago, when I posted one of my first artwork posts on the TWEWY community, a person told me one thing. The TWEWY style? It's all graffitis. They're alive, moving and the style is very much cartoonized. The limbs, proportions, everything... but somehow, it still works! Figure out how and you'll be on the right track.

3. The lineart is everything. It's the core of the style. As I said, try to think why certain parts look like how they look. It's not just about BOLDING the outline and blacking out every shadow. The lineart is dynamic. You have to know the way light reflects on objects etc. There's a plenty of tutorials out there for that! Follow one rule - make the lineart confident. If you're not good at drawing hands, don't try to hide them by drawing a few messy lines. Either go learn drawing them or don't do it at all because especially in this style, it damages the whole balance a lot. I'm a living proof of that ;___; /sucks at hands/

4. It helps to compare with other works Nomura has done. I think it's obvious that most of the artworks in TWEWY were not done by him. If I were to guess, the only shown artwork he has actually done is the cover and the character designs... but still. Gen Kobayashi [the one whom I believe drew all the official game artworks, sans the game cutscenes] follows his style. Compare the eyes style to Final Fantasy or Kingdom Hearts. Notice a pattern? Nomura's style is actually very, very realistic, yet, there's heavy manga influence. Don't forget that most of his game are 3D!

5. TWEWY's plot is set in Shibuya. A super-modern fashion centre which lies in one of the most eccentric and busy metropolises of the world - Tokyo. So you think all you have to do is put some really fashionable stuff on the characters to make them fit in better?

Well, try to draw a character with absolutely plain clothes. It helps studying the background characters that come up in the game [the crowd people, the Shrimp, Makoto, Mina, Ai...].

6. Every style has a deeper meaning to it. It's a result of a long road of the author's improvement, the way HE/SHE does things. Not just what you see. Same goes for TWEWY. As I said, it's not just about bold lines, a lot of black shadows and fashionable clothes. If you want to draw people, you have to LEARN HOW TO DRAW THEM. This is no exception. The style won't hide your lack of anatomy knowledge!

...And now, I ended up rambling. This is just a random train of my thoughts, with no organization. So if you find yourself not getting the point... well, I apologize. I'm sure there's a lot more I can say to this issue, I just can't come up with it right now.

Okay, what I wanted to get through with this article is - please, don't ask me the question again. I won't be able to answer you. This is as far as I can go. I'm sorry if I've let someone down.

Thank you for your immense support, even in the period of my inactivity...